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Before, we go any further, here's a recent interview that Federer gave to ESPN in which he stated that there's no doubt that Novak Djokovic is the best player on Hard court currently & he is the man to beat currently especially on hard courts.

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So, here are the 5 things that Roger Federer needs to do to beat Novak Djokovic

(i) Roger Federer needs to serve well

As you saw from the above highlights of Isner vs Djokovic match, no player can ever defeat Djokovic on an outdoor hard court if he isn't serving to his 100% potential.

A quick rewind of Federer's magnificent peRFormance during French Open, 2011 semi-final or the Wimbledon 2012 semi-final vs Djokovic & the key to success was his immaculate service.

There is no denying of the fact, that Djokovic reads Federer's service better than any one, but, still, memory of these above mentioned matches tells us that Djokovic is bound to get frustrated as his biggest strength is his depth & accuracy of returns & the best way to frustrate him is to keep serving well.

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I surely am in that camp of believers who believe that if some one goes really hard on Novak Djokovic's forehand, it has a much greater chance to wilt down. Roger Federer had used this tactic to great advantage during the Wimbledon 2012 semi-final. Even, Rafa Nadal exploited this during the Italian Open & French Open finals.

There is no denying of the fact, that his double handed back-hand is arguably the best ever that I have seen in the modern era, thou, Andre Agassi back-hand was more close & dear to my heart .

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Roger Federer has to try to use a lot of slice, varying pace/spin of shots. Roger will have to make many shots with slightly varying pace to stop Novak Djokovic from getting in to that baseline groove.

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(v) Try to draw Novak Djokovic on to the net & use his weakness at the Net

Of all the players who have remained No. 1 consecutively for 52 weeks or more, probably Djokovic's volleying has to be the weakest.

Some how, Roger Federer has to use his short slice more & try to entice Djokovic on to the net & then play his world-famous passing shots.

Also, its a fact that Novak Djokovic has a great chance to get frustrated if his back-hand winners are not winning him points. Before mid 2010, it was the biggest weakness of Djokovic that once he started getting frustrated, his game used to crumble a lot.

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Thou, this match is too close to call & a few points here & there will make all the difference. But, If some one was to put a gun on my head & ask me, what the outcome (in percentage terms) is likely to be, I will say,

Roger Federer has a 52% chance to win the match, seeing his current form & momentum.

Fun Fact:

To the best of my knowledge, this Cincinnati Open, 2012 for sure is the first ATP 1000 tournament in which both the finalists (Roger Federer & Novak Djokovic) service is yet to be broken even once during the whole tournament.

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On 10 September last year, at 5 am in the morning, I watched in disbelief as Novak Djokovic saved 2 match points at 5-3, 40-15 down. My idol somehow went on to lose the fifth set 7-5. I was totally crushed. My ideals and beliefs took a huge blow and I actually posted, “hate to say it but this is the end of an era”. Yes, I sincerely believed that was the end of Roger Federer. I revived my interest in his career at Roland Garros last year and was captivated beyond all measure when he handed Djokovic an epic masterclass performance. He then lost the final to Nadal but that was to be expected on the orange clay of Paris. Still, I saw the fire and passion in his eyes and thought that his renaissance was imminent. I went on to watch Wimbledon and it seemed to be coming true, it was a Federer reminiscent of earlier days, and in the quarterfinals against Tsonga, he was up 6-4, 7-6. Seemed a done deal and I looked forward to another semifinal against Djokovic. Somehow, Tsonga took the last 3 sets by the same scoreline of 6-4. I was rocked to my core. It took me a while to get over this defeat – for the second consecutive year, Roger was out at the quarters at Wimbledon? I tried to believe still, but defeat to Tsonga (again!) and Berdych in Montreal and Cincinnati shook me further. Then, it came to Flushing Meadows. A place of sentiment. Roger cruised and I was hopeful again. He utterly decimated Juan Monaco in the round of sixteen. Even Tsonga his new bogeyman was powerless as Federer romped through him in the quarters in straight sets. Again, it was Federer vs. Djokovic in the semis. I watched with bated breath. The 2010 encounter had seen Federer squander 2 match points and lose the 5th set 7-5. This year though, Federer seemed to have the upper hand. Spewing fire with every shot, Roger didn’t give an inch and took the first two sets 7-6, 6-3. It appeared to be a sure-win. Concentration disappeared though and Djokovic roared back 6-2, 6-1. The fifth set was on. Roger got the crucial break in the 8th game and went up 5-3, and was going to serve out the match! Novak’s resistance was gone, and Federer held 2 match points at 40-15. Perhaps the next moment would be what rebooted Roger’s career, but not without dealing him an almost fatal blow first. The Federer serve swerved out wide to Djokovic’s forehand with good angle. Djokovic, in desperation, lunged for it wildly and produced an insane cross-court return. Roger had no chance of returning it. That was the nail in the coffin and Roger couldn’t recover after that. I knew what this defeat meant, but worse still, so did Federer.

“You call that confidence? You’ve got to be kidding me. People grow up playing like that when they’re always down in the scoreline and they just swing wildly and open up their shoulders. I’ve never played like that. I always believed that hard work would pay off.”

Yes Roger you were right, but it paid off for you from 2003-2007. Some sheer willpower saw you make history in 2009. But now was different. At 30, facing 2 indomitable rivals in Nadal and Djokovic, things had changed dramatically. And this was your best chance to win Grand Slam No. 17. But it wasn’t to be. I didn’t expect much from Roger after this and I rued not watching him more during his vintage years. I was dead wrong though. The vintage years have returned, and I just witnessed it tonight.

Cincinnati is the Masters 1000 tournament just before the US Open. Almost identical conditions, a very quick surface, high bouncing, not too much margin for error. But today, it just took on another level of meaning for Federer. It marks the end of a golden year ever since losing to Djokovic at the US Open 2011. The poetic justice was so great and it just stirred my emotion to the core. Losing to Novak and being written off, being confined to the shackles of age. He took 6 weeks off and came back stronger than ever, steely but passionate, focused yet fluid, calm yet fiery. A year on, Roger defeated Novak convincingly to punctuate his renaissance.

“There’s a lot on the line for me, I’m not denying that. I’ve worked extremely hard since losing that match point to Novak last year,” Roger said it all too plainly before the Wimbledon final this year. Yes, ironically, it was the moment that could have shattered all the willpower Federer had left in him, that crushing defeat was what revived Roger in the end. I truly felt that this week, I had the chance to watch the Federer of his prime years. No, scratch that. The vintage Federer, with ameliorated wisdom, foresight and passion. Winning a masters title without dropping a set, or even dropping serve?! I cannot believe what we have just seen. Roger Federer at his unbelievable best. He has obliterated everyone in his path this week mercilessly, yet not in a methodical, boring style. He did it with belief, flair and confidence exuding from every shot. I believe that Roger’s losses last year have reformed him, and he now plays with a different mentality. With every ball off his strings, his hand knows the pain of defeat, the feeling of having victory snatched away when it seemed fated, and more importantly, the strength to never let it happen again. Federer said after winning Wimbledon this year that he went to the net so often and played so aggressively because he had to have the match on his racquet – he had to win or lose on his own terms. Living and dying by the sword. Roger lost in Melbourne and Paris this year because he went for his shots but made too many unforced errors, but it just shows he won’t allow matches to be decided by his opponent any longer.

I’ve really been in awe with the new Roger we are seeing. We saw the genius and maestro that won 12 Grand Slams rapidly from 2003-2007. We saw the new Roger after mononucleosis, the hard-headed Roger that won Roland Garros and Wimbledon in 2009 to rewrite the record books. And now, following US Open 2011, we have Roger 3.0 – the ultimate tennis player. Mental strength is now perhaps his strongest attribute. In the tiebreak just now, Roger was 2 points from losing the 2nd set multiple times. Each time, his serve delivered when it mattered. Aces and unreturned serves kept the tiebreak in his favour. The agony of losing after holding match points has been etched in his memory. The chance to claim the title at 6-5 in the tiebreak was wasted, but he did not give in to set point at 6-7 down. Roger roared back and won 9-7.

This is the ultimate reward of being a FedFan, especially over the last 12 months. Roger has now won 8 tournaments since then, Wimbledon, 4 Masters 1000 Titles, the World Tour Finals and 2 Tour 500 events. Of the 6 Masters he played since then Roger won 4. That is incredible! He is now 56-7 for this year and 17-0 for the end of last year. That is a combined 73-7. 73 out of 80 matches won. Outstanding. I feel like it has been a brand new journey ever since Flushing Meadows last year. The initial recovery at Basel, spurred on by home support, the mastery of indoor courts at Bercy and banishing of Berdych and Tsonga his demons, the dominance and power at the O2 Arena for the Tour Finals showed new life in Roger. Injury and a few too many unforced errors ended his campaigns at the semifinal stage in Doha and the Australian Open, but Roger roared back and won 3 straight tournaments in Rotterdam, Dubai and Indian Wells. Indian Wells saw a brave and fearless performance against Nadal in the semis, testament to Roger 3.0, although fatigue caught up with him as he lost early in Miami (the same thing just happened in the Olympic final against Murray). New conditions, new Federer. Blue clay in Madrid saw him seize the title delightfully. Hard-fought campaigns in Rome and Roland Garros ended at the hands of Novak, but the orange dirt hasn’t been friendly to Roger over his career and he did well to be consistent. Halle saw a return to grass but the final was lost to a resurgent Haas. Wimbledon 2012 revealed a different side to Roger. Hellbent on winning, Roger fought through all kinds of problems. The pressure of imminent defeat against Benneteau, the back trouble against Malisse, revenge on the line against Novak and the partisan crowd in the final versus Murray. Federer mowed down whatever stood in his way of his 7th Wimbledon and did so in style. And now, the mastery looks set to continue on the hard courts of America. I look forward to seeing Roger in New York, and it looks like the time spent between the ages of 30 to 31 for him was indeed remarkable. 31 and going strong, our maestro Roger Federer

And now, the mastery looks set to continue on the hard courts of America. I look forward to seeing Roger in New York, and it looks like the time spent between the ages of 30 to 31 for him was indeed remarkable. 31 and going strong, our maestro Roger Federer

Excellent post, please make it a new topic, as it will gather a very large audience with a new topic .

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